Banking envelope



July 21 1964 H. M. WHITMAN 3,141,603

BANKING ENVELOPE Filed April l0, 1962 Fis. 2

TRomc BANK Arm Tnusr Cowmv H0. BOX M00 nu; 'nun-f ANVJWW .link Gli )INVI JIIWIL INVENTOR. H.M.WH1TMAN @WM/@MA ATTDIN'Y United States Patent O 3,141,663 BANKENG ENVELPE Harlan M. Whitman, Minneapolis, Minn., assigner to Curtis 1000, Incorporated, St. Paul, Minn., a corporation of Minnesota Filed Apr. 10, 1962, Ser. No. 186,553 1 Claim. (Cl. 229-76) This invention relates to envelopes for mailing deposits to a bank and more particularly to a type of envelope that has been pre-qualified with the depositors account number in magnetic ink on the deposit slip forming an integral part of the envelope.

An object of the present invention is to provide a onepiece envelope with supplemental detachable panels, one of the panels forming a deposit slip and the other panel forming a receipt for deposits, both panels being formed by an exension of the back panel of the envelope and one or both panels being slightly laterally offset from the body of the envelope.

Since the adoption of electronic banking equipment and by depositor identifications being indicated by coded indicia in magnetic ink on checks and deposit slips, it is extremely essential that this coded indicia be accurately positioned on the deposit slip panels of bank-by-mail envelopes so that the deposit may be properly processed automatically by the electronic equipment now in use in bank accounting methods.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to olfset the supplemental panels of the envelope or one of them laterally from one end of the envelope so that the position of the depositor identification indicia on the panel forming the deposit slip may be printed in a precise position relative to the end and free edge of the panel. With the imprinting of this indicia being done with the envelope and panels completely folded, the identification indicia will appear along the lower edge of the deposit slip panel.

With the above and other obects in View, the invention may include the features of construction and operation set forth in the following specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawing.

In the accompanying drawing annexed hereto and forming a part of this specification, I have shown the invention embodied in a standard bank-by-mail envelope, but it will be understood that the invention may be otherwise embodied and that the drawing is not to be construed as defining or limiting the scope of the invention, the claim appended to this specilication being relied upon for that purpose.

In the drawing:

FIG. l is a view of the printed side of the completely unfolded blank from which the present envelope is made, and

FIG. 2 is a View of the envelope shown in partially folded form after being printed and imprinted with the depositors deposit account number.

In the above mentioned drawing, there has been shown but one embodiment of the invention which is now deemed preferable, but it is to be understood that changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the appended claim Without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Referring more in detail to the figures of the drawing and first to FIG. 1, it will be seen that the blank for the envelope includes two supplemental panels and 12 in addition to the usual front and back panels 14 and 16 respectively forming parts of a standard envelope. Both supplemental panels 10 and 12 extend from the free edge forming the upper end of the back panel 16 and are integral therewith. Lines of perforation are provided between the back panel 16 and first supplemental panel 10 and 3,141,603 Patented July 21, 1964 ICC between the panels 10 and 12 at their fold lines as shown.

The panels 10, 12 and 14 and flap 20 of the envelope are printed in unfolded form on one face of the envelope by the envelope manufacturer, as shown in FIG. l with the exception of the indicia 22. After the envelope has been completed and delivered to the bank in folded form, the bank then imprints the deposit slip 12 of the envelope with the individual customers account number 22. In addition to the printing shown in FIG. 1, the opposite face 13 of the deposit slip forming the outer panel 12 of the envelope also may be printed by the envelope manufacturer for the entry of additional checks, etc. This additional printing is partially shown at 13 in FIG. 2.

The envelope is gummed and folded in the usual manner after printing with the back panel 16 gummed to side aps 18 and with a sealing flap 20 gummed but not sealed extending from the free longitudinal edge of the front panel 14.

As shown in FIG. 1 the left hand edges of the supplemental panels 10 and 12 extend slightly beyond the corresponding edge of the envelope. The right hand edges of the panels 10 and 12 are within the body portion of the envelope formed by the front and back panels 14 and 16. The outer supplemental panel 12 forming the deposit slip is of conventional shorter length than the envelope. 'Ihe inner panel 10 forming the deposit receipt panel is of greater length than the deposit slip but as shown in FIG. 1 is shorter than the front and back panels 14 and 16 of the envelope so that when detached from the back panel 16 it will t within the envelope without folding.

The front and/ or back panels 14 and 16 may be printed as shown. The supplemental panels 10 and 12 may also be printed and addressed when the envelope is initially made so that when forwarded to a depositor it will be ready for use.

Prior to forwarding small numbers of these bank-bymail envelopes by a bank to a depositor, the account number 22 for the particular depositor is imprinted on the deposit slip panel 12 while the envelope is folded as shown in FIG. 2 of the drawing. During this imprinting the sealing flap 20 may be folded as shown in dotted lines in FIG. 2. During this imprinting operation the envelope is positioned relative to the printing mechanism by stops bearing against the right hand end of the deposit slip panel 12 as seen in FIG. 2 which extends beyond the lateral edge of the envelope. The position therefore of the indicia 22 lengthwise on each envelope will be identical. Also the imprinting will be positioned vertically of the envelope by stops bearing the fold line between the supplement panels 10 and 12. This fold line, which also is the location of the line of perforations between the supplemental panels, extends slightly beyond the lower longitudinal edge of the envelope as seen in FIG. 2.

The amount of offset of the panels 10 and 12 or panel 12 only may be relatively slight, the principal requirement being that the envelope will be positioned during the imprinting by engagement of the positioning devices of the imprinting machine with the off-set edge of the deposit slip panel.

I claim as my invention:

A foldable one-piece assembly especially adapted when in folded form for the printing and accurate positioning of identifying indicia thereon by a bank and for the subsequent use as a bank-by-mail envelope by a customer, comprising in combination:

a rectangular envelope comprising a front panel and a back panel which are superposed and connected together along their bottom edge and both end edges, the upper edges of said panels being closable, one of said panels being slightly narrower than the other of said panels, a sealing apconnected to and integral with the upper edge of the wider of said panels, foldably and separably connected to the upper edge of the narrower of said panels a first rectangular supplemental panel which is shorter and narrower than said wider panel, whereby it can lit inside said envelope without folding, is slightly wider than said narrower panel so that when it is folded against said narrower panel along said upper edge, it extends below the bottom edge of said envelope, and extends slightly beyond one end edge of said envelope, foldably and separatably connected to the opposite edge of said first supplemental panel along a fold line, a second rectangular supplemental panel which 1s shorter and narrower than said widerl panel, where- 4. by it lits inside said envelope Without folding, and in line with the end edge of said first supplemental panel extending beyond the end edge of said envelope, whereby, when said rst supplemental panel is folded against said narrower panel and said second supplementary panel is folded against said lirst supplemental panel, magnetic indicia can be printed in accurate predetermined position on said second supplemental panel, stops bearing against the extended edge of said supplemental panels and said fold line and thereby serving to position said assembly respectively laterally and vertically.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,112,227 Berkowitz Mar. 29, 1938 2,775,396 Lindner Dec. 25, 1956 2,835,512 Whitman May 20, 1958 2,984,403 David May 16, 1961 3,104,800 Johnson et al. Sept. 24, 1963 

